Fontaines DC, Finsbury Park, London review • DIY Magazine

Flashes of neon green, pink, and blue dominate the bottleneck out of London’s Finsbury Park station. This is the glaring, cyberpunk world of ‘Romance’, last year’s bronze medal holder in DIY’s Albums of the Year list. It is the album which flipped everything we thought we knew about Fontaines DC on its head. The album that saw five introverted, pensive Irishmen who had previously grappled with burnout (‘A Hero’s Death’) and shifts in identity (‘Skinty Fia’) completely reinvent their aesthetic, and dive into the dystopian trench that borders reality.

The striking announcement video for this show – shot exactly one year ago on a gloomy day – highlighted the ambition that now partially, at least, defines the band. Today’s gig is a stone’s throw away from The Finsbury, the pub where they first played in London to just 30 lucky souls back in 2017. Having played second fiddle to Sam Fender when he graced this exact stage in 2022, the time has come for Fontaines DC to have their turn: 45,000 people. Everybody gets a big shot, baby.

Bringing some of guitar music’s guiding lights along for the ride (including Cardinals and Been Stellar), DIY hears a gorgeous glimpse of Blondshell’s ‘Salad’ as we clamber through the gates, met with an army of people eagerly waiting for Kneecap. Among perhaps the largest crowd Finsbury Park has ever seen at 5.30pm is none other than Dave Grohl, watching along from the sound tower. “It’s nice to be back in London and not be up in court,” quips Kneecap’s Mo Chara. Despite the recent media storm that has followed the band in the wake of their unequivocal condemnation of the Israeli government for committing genocide in Gaza, it’s maybe easy to forget the bangers Kneecap have in their locker. Take the pounding ‘Guilty Conscience’ or the trippy, rampant ‘I’m Flush’, for example, both of which send the mosh pits into pandemonium.

In a shiny silver jacket and wizard-like pointed beanie, Grian Chatten emerges for ‘Better Way To Live’, giving the crowd a teaser of what’s to come. Amidst the carnage and zingers, Mo Chara takes a second to put everything into perspective, as the crowd listens intently. “You’re in a field with people you love, who have the same ideas as you… remember how lucky we are to have today.” As they lead chants of ‘free, free, Palestine’ and the sun peeks out from behind the clouds, that overwhelming sense of gratitude hangs over Finsbury Park.

Next come Amyl & The Sniffers in the form of their lives. Since last October’s ‘Cartoon Darkness’, the band’s live sound has metamorphosed into a battering ram of noise-rock, spearheaded by Declan Martens’ Gibson Explorer. No word is wasted, be it Amy Taylor’s stark reminder of the ongoing problems around domestic and sexual violence (“fellas, we fucking need you”) before ‘Knifey’, or her call to be consciously and actively involved in politics.

‘Hertz’ is sung back like a football chant, while ‘Chewing Gum’ sounds thunderous, with Amy’s mischievous Australian accent sitting perfectly in the mix alongside the band’s moving parts. It’s slick, it’s raw, and leaves you eyeing up a ticket to their Alexandra Palace knees-up this October.

Let’s hear it for the boys. After knee-jerk neon flashes beckon in Fontaines DC’s arrival, gloriously grungy opener ‘Here’s The Thing’ lifts Finsbury Park – which is packed out to the trees – into an alternate dimension. Incredibly, ‘Boys In The Better Land’ comes third, setting off the night’s first flares while Grian edges closer onto that runway, kitted out in a chequered kilt and that same silver jacket, which he imminently discards.

Atop this stage tonight, Fontaines DC are gods. ‘It’s Amazing To Be Young’ brings everything right back down to earth, channelling one blissful aspect of what it feels to be alive. Similarly, ‘A Hero’s Death’’s repeated affirmation of "Life ain’t always empty" has never felt more urgent, its eternal place in the setlist reminding us of the core morals that will always underpin this band.

‘Bug’ equals ‘Favourite’ – dedicated to Grian’s partner, Georgie Jesson – as a euphoric fans-on-shoulders moment, while the weatherman elevates a rare outing for ‘Hurricane Laughter’ with harsh, darkening clouds that overlook Finsbury Park. The pitch-shifted might of ‘Desire’ is Smashing Pumpkins-esque. “I just want to say thank you so much to each and every one of you here,” offers Grian, before he stops himself. “I’m talking too much here.”

Throughout the day, Palestinian flags have taken over Finsbury Park, as the band display a gigantic message of solidarity with the Palestinian people during the immortal bridge of ‘I Love You’, whose initial bassline is met with audible cheers. Flares burn bright during visceral closer ‘Starburster’, as Grian canters up the runway, holding his mic stand out to the crowd, finally becoming the frontman that the world has built him up to be.

Fame found Grian Chatten and Fontaines DC through no fault of their own. Finally, it would seem, they are embracing their inevitable destiny. Tonight, their post-’Romance’ aura exudes out of the stage like a true festival headliner of the present. From five awkward post-punk kids to one of the most effortlessly dominant guitar acts of their generation, they stand without compromising the undeniable truth that they have become the band they always set out to be.